Four Years Later
by Sora Takenouchi Ishida
Summary: Take a look at the Destined Children four years after defeating Apocalymon and how they work their way on reconnecting with each other. Prequel for Back to Your Heart. Hikari's POV for most of the story.


Hello guys! I'm back with another fanfiction. I've had this idea of writing a prequel for Back to Your Heart for a while now, and I thought I could give it a shot. As stated, it takes place four years after Digimon Adventure and right before Zero Two, but it focus on their lives in Japan only. Take a look at how the Destined Children moved on with their lives after defeating Apocalymon and meet each other after four years without any contact. Please review! Hope you all enjoy the first chapter.

**Four Years Later**

**Chapter 1: Meeting Old Friends (Part 1)**

[Hikari's POV]  
August 2nd. For some, it's just another typical summer day, with the temperature high as usual. But for me, it was the day my life changed. It was the day I found out I was a Destined Child and I met my partner. You probably think I'm weird for talking and being friends with a being that's not real, but I'm used to it I guess. My friends also took a long time to believe all the strange things showed on TV, because they didn't get it. I have to confess I found them all weird when I also had no clue what was going on back then. Now I'm a sort of hero in Japan, I'm not exactly comfortable with it though. You see, I'm just 11 years old. Being a hero is just odd. But I must admit it's also pretty cool, people stop me and ask for an autograph. Honestly, none of this really matters because she's not here with me. I miss her, but yet I know she can't be in this world. You're probably asking how I can love a digital animal, my answer is: only people who've been through what I have can. Right now, I'm looking through my glass door, remembering the day she met and how she was kidnapped for trying to get my crest back. I reached up my neck and realize my whistle is missing. I can't help but sigh and smile as I think about my partner.  
"Hikari?"  
I turn around, still kind of lost in my own thoughts, and see my brother standing by the door. He was the one who changed the least, physically speaking, of all of us. He still has the same spiky long brown hair, but he doesn't use cheesy clothes anymore. One of the benefits of elementary school, if you ask me.  
"Are you okay?"  
I shake my head, trying to get Tailmon out of my mind. "Yeah, I'm fine."  
"Great, cause you've been here for hours."  
"You know what day is today?" I asked all of sudden, which caught Taichi by surprise. He's always been terrible with remembering special dates.  
"August 2nd, why?"  
"Today is the day I met Tailmon for the first time, two years ago."  
"That's right!" He slapped his forehead. "I had no idea it had been this long!"  
"Yeah." I said in a very low tone as I turned around to face the view from my door again.  
"Something tells me you're missing her." Taichi said in a serious tone as he stopped by my side.  
"I just wish she was here with me for today." I tried to fight the tears threatening to fall from my eyes. "I'm not sure she remembers this is the day we met, so much happened in the following days then."  
"Of course she remembers it. And I'm sure she wants to see you again." He placed his hand on my shoulder, reassuring me of what he was telling me.  
"I just think the death of Wizardmon is what she remembers the most of the events here."  
"Are you kidding me? You're seriously thinking you're not nearly as important to her as Wizardmon was?"  
"No, of course not. We were both special in different ways, I guess."  
"Good. You'd be stupid if you thought that."  
"Gee, thank you." I forced a smile. "What about you? Do you miss Agumon?"  
"Everyday. I feel weird without him around. I got so used to having him with me all the time that I feel… _incomplete_, if that makes sense."  
It makes all the sense of the world, brother. I wonder how the other kids are doing now and if they're all right. We promised to keep in touch, but we sort of drifted apart. It's normal, right? I'm once again brought to reality when my alarm goes off, reminding me I have ballet classes in half an hour.

As I was making my way out of school, two hours later, I stopped by the tennis court. An auburn haired girl playing against another girl, probably practicing for the national competition. I couldn't help but smile, being proud of her. I turned my back to the court and started walking away and I heard someone calling me.  
"Hello, Sora." I said as I turned to face her.  
"What are you doing here?"  
"I just had ballet classes. I was on my way home and saw you were playing tennis. Are you practicing for a tournament?"  
"Yeah." She said, a little blushed. "My teacher signed me up for Wimbledon this year."  
"Are you kidding me? That's so awesome, Sora!"  
"I guess so…"  
"What's wrong?"  
"I'm just nervous about going to another country, you know? I've never left Japan before."  
"Don't worry, you'll do great. Is your coach going with you?"  
"She is, I wouldn't handle all the pressure of a worldwide competition like Wimbledon alone."  
"You have a point." Over Sora's shoulder, I could see and hear her teacher calling for her. "Well, I don't want to ruin your practice. I'll see you soon."  
"Yeah, yeah. We should hang out more often." She said with a smile. "We barely see each other anymore."  
"Sure, let's do it. You have my number, so you can call me anytime. Or I'll call you."  
"Great."  
"See you around. Bye."  
"Bye."

I almost got run over by my brother when I opened the front door. He was late for his football class as always. Someone should really introduce him to alarm clocks. I could smell something delicious coming from the kitchen as I took off my shoes and left them near the door. My mother should really have been a cook, she would be great at it.  
"Hello darling. How was your ballet class today?"  
"It was great, thanks. I saw Sora after it."  
"I haven't seen her in a while. How is she?"  
"She's good. She told me her teacher signed her up for Wimbledon this year."  
"That's awesome. I bet she's excited."  
"She is, but also a little nervous because it's in another country and all. And then I told her we should hang out some time. I miss her."  
"She's an amazing girl. It's a shame Taichi and her aren't as close anymore. She used to come here all the time."  
"Yes, I remember that. I used to be jealous of her friendship with Taichi, I wanted to have that with her too." I pulled a chair and sat down. "It's crazy to know the Digital World brought everyone together."  
"Speaking of that… you don't talk about Tailmon anymore. Do you still contact her?"  
"Not as much as I wanted to. I think the last time I talked to her was a year ago."  
"Wow, has it been that long?"  
"Yep, time flies by, huh?"  
"It sure does." Mrs. Kamiya paused. "Do you miss her?"  
I have to admit my mother's question caught me by surprise. Of course I miss Tailmon, I just never talked to anyone about it, other than Taichi obviously. It never occurred to me that it was clear to everyone else, especially my mom.  
"Yes, everyday." I sighed. "But I have to move on with my life, right?"  
"But that doesn't mean you two have to let go of each other. Some friends are forever."  
I couldn't help but smile. "I like the way you think. But I don't know if the portal is still open."  
"Well, you'll never know unless you try."  
"You have a point."  
"Life is all about taking chances, sweetie."  
"You're right. I'm going to try to see her again."

[Sora's POV]  
Today has been an odd day. I saw Hikari, Taichi's sister, for the first time since we came back from the Digital World. I was surprised to see how much she's grown. We talked briefly, but promised to hang out more. And then I saw _him_. He was so good-looking, and I never found him attractive before. His blond hair isn't as spiky as it was two years ago, when I last saw him, but it still looks awesome. I'm so thankful he was far away, so he couldn't see me blushing and cursing at the girls he's hanging out with. I was startled when someone put a hand on my shoulder.  
"Are you day dreaming again, Sora?"  
I smiled weakly. "No, I was just distracted. That's all."  
"Distracted by that weird blonde?" Natsuko teased me.  
"Of course not!" I yelled, trying to sound convincing, in vain.  
"You like him!" She screamed in excitement.  
"Shut up, Natsuko! And don't talk so loud."  
"Do you know him?"  
"Eh… I used to. We went to the same camping four years ago."  
"So you two must have spent a lot of time together, huh?"  
"I guess so. I didn't know he had transferred to our school, though."  
"For some reason I'm not buying your explanation about knowing this guy."  
"Of course you wouldn't." I smiled. "You never buy anything."  
"That's right."  
"Only you could brag over something like this."  
"Anyway, we should talk about how you're going to get this boy."  
"What?!" I screamed.  
"You like him and you're not doing anything about it?"  
"Yeah, that was my plan."  
"That's not gonna happen."  
"Natsuko, I'm fourteen! I'm too young to date."  
"It's never too early to start, trust me."  
"So you've been in dates before?"  
"Not like adult ones, I'm not that weird. I have childish-like dates, if that makes sense."  
"Not really. But none of this conversation is making sense, so…"  
"So, we should work on a scheme to get this guy."  
"Natsuko, I said I'm not doing anything! So forget about it."  
"Come on, Sora. He might be your soul mate. The only way to know it for sure is dating him."  
"I'm just a teenager! Plus, if he's really my soul mate like you said, things will work out for us eventually."  
"What if they won't? Will you be okay with him marrying someone else?"  
"Why are we talking about this?"  
"Because we are planning your future."  
"You're crazy, you know that? All I know right now is that I don't want to date him. Is that clear?"  
"Gee, you're so boring." Natsuko pouted. "Alright, if that's what you want."  
"Thank you. Now let's go back to our practice."  
I sighed as I headed back to the court. I hate hiding things from my best friend, but I made a pact with the other Destined we wouldn't tell anyone what we went through. People in Japan think everything that happened two years ago – the invasion of Digital Monsters and all – was just an illusion, so we decided to keep things that way. I believe it would be chaos if they all found out there was another world like ours. I turned around and observed Yamato Ishida one last time. My heart nearly stopped beating in the second my eyes met his baby blue ones and he smiled briefly at me. I could have sworn my face went bright red. I quickly turned away and ran back to Natsuko. Of course she noticed my blushed face.  
"Why are you red?"  
"No reason." I replied quickly, refusing to look at her.  
"What happened?"  
"Nothing happened, Natsuko. I don't want to talk about it."  
"Did you talk to him?"  
"No. I said I haven't seen him in years."  
"So what? It's a great way to start over."  
"I don't know."  
"Come on, Sora."  
"No, I don't want to. So let's just forget about it, okay?"  
"Alright. You can't regret it later, though."  
"I won't, I promise."  
Natsuko and I collected our things and headed to the court for a final practicing match.

[Yamato's POV]  
What's wrong with me? I never felt anything like this before. Seeing Sora again was so… weird. Okay, that's not exactly the word I was looking for. She looked so… _stunning_, her hair was a little below her shoulder. I don't think I ever see her hair so long. I had an urge to go talk to her, but these groupies won't leave me alone. I'm not even famous yet, but I already hate having groupies. I mean, they're good for making out and all, but they're always following wherever you go. I always hated having people following me around. My thoughts were cut off when someone shook me.  
"Yama, are you okay?"  
"What? Yes, I'm fine." I turned around and smiled. "Thanks for taking me away from these girls, Takeru."  
"You're welcome. But where exactly were you staring at? Or should I say who were you staring at?"  
"No one." I quickly replied, but my face said otherwise.  
"Come on, brother. You can tell me."  
"I just saw someone from the past. _Our_ past."  
"Who?"  
"She's right over there." I pointed to the auburn girl and my brother followed it.  
"Oh my god, that's Sora! Did you go talk to her?"  
"No, but she noticed me too. She was staring at me some minutes ago."  
"Well, why don't we go talk to her? I miss her!"  
"Maybe some other time. I have to practice with the band." I tried to play cool and started walking away.  
"Oh, I was really looking forward to catching up with her."  
"You can do it, but I can't stay."  
"Nah, I'll do it other day. I'm meeting up with the basketball team later."  
"Alright, then."  
"But we still need to talk about your blush just now."  
"I didn't blush!"  
"If I didn't know you any better, I'd say you have feelings for Sora."  
"I do not!"  
"That's okay. I always thought you two would look great together."  
"What now?"  
"It's just a thought." He smiled. "Hey, you don't need to tell me if you don't want to. I understand."  
"Thanks, bro."  
I glanced over at Sora once again, before leaving with my brother.


End file.
